Mina’s Brazilian SteakHouse – Steak me home tonight

3.9/5 on the Foodie Foursome Index4.1/5 on the Brazilian ScaleMike’s Review: 💸🍗🍛🐟👅
“Are you sure this is it?” I asked Jenna pulling up to the 36 level condo complex on the Bow River, “Yes! Why do you keep asking?” she replied with her tensions rising… “because MAYBE I want to start the blog review with this dialogue” I responded… and thus my review began.

We walked into the dimly lit steakhouse allowing our eyes to adjust. One thing I immediately noticed, I know this is no reflection of the food and should not matter, but the servers were all from Brazil… something, once again, that should not matter but did lend an air of authenticity to the evening (we don’t want to step on dangerous sand here). It also helped when explaining the dishes and helping us to pronounce things! The salad bar was top notch, ceviche, salmon, curry, but both I and Beltline Bites (Aadil) knew those were fillers to stop us from enjoying the expensive Brazilian meats… and when they came… they came like the 2002 Brazilian world cup soccer team against Germany… (I had to wiki that)

We had entered Flavour country! lamb, ribs, pork, chicken, pork wrapped ribs, rib wrapped lamp, at one point I didn’t know what was wrapped with what and all that remained were bones stacked high on my plate. I liked the food, I loved the salad bar, I loved the décor, and I liked the service… but could it compete with Calgary’s growing food scene? Only time will tell… Eating the chicken heart also added a flair of adventure and made me feel like Ozzy Osbourne on stage, which is always a treat. A blemish on the evening was the cost, I didn’t feel like I gorged myself enough to warrant the $50 food tab (plus drinks) but then again they need to protect themselves against the cowboys of Calgary who get their monies worth.

As an interesting side… I went into the washroom at the end of our Brazilian Food Journey, and I saw a man coming out of the stall with a full fancy traditional Brazilian cocktail in hand! What happened?!? What was he doing in there that required nourishment while performing?! The entire scenario just raised more questions than answers, but as I gave him a head nod… and he nodded back… we had a moment where I knew that I had witnessed something either amazing, or terrible.

Jenna’s Review: 🍢🍖🍢🍖😪
Mina’s meat bonanza! That it how I would describe the dinner. If you like protein then this is the place for you. If you are a vegetarian, I would still say you could make give it a try because they have a wonderful salad bar that one could easily fill up on that is quite tasty and has no meat involved! But realistically if you are vegetarian you miss out on the real experience which is a boundless carousel of meats… and a Brazilian BBQ probably should not be your first choice…

I really enjoyed it because I have always loved steak, chicken, pork, lamb, turkey you name it. It was fun having them bring the different varieties to your table to try. Being food bloggers of course I tried everything (including the not so memorable chicken heart) and my favorites included the chorizo sausage, the turkey wrapped bacon and the garlic butter steak. If you intend to go I would strongly suggest a light lunch or to actually go for the lunch and skip dinner because it really fills you up. I believe the phrase is “meat sweats”.

I also tried the Brazilian soda “Guana” I believe while I was there and that was a refreshing treat in between all the mounds of meat. The ambiance was also quite bright and vibrant even though the lights were dim. My only complaint was that some of the meat, such as the lamb and one of the beefs, tasted somewhat like game meat, however that didn’t stop me from eating it so it wasn’t too bad. It isn’t a place you could go all the time but it would be an awesome place for a work lunch or a birthday. I definitely got my fill for a while now. Next up juice cleanse! Seriously though….

Aadil and Shaista’s Experience/Review:Minas Brazilian Steakhouse is tucked away in the bottom of the Waterfront condo building and would probably be missed by most pedestrians that walk by. Once you enter the space, a cheerful hostess greets you and your senses overload due to the colors adorning every wall. It’s a funky open space with a “private” space at the back of the restaurant that could easily be used for larger parties.

Our waiter was friendly and attentive, giving us the full rundown on how things worked at Minas – help yourself to the salad/hot food bar and when you want the meaty feast to begin simply turn the Minas branded plastic triangle from red to green. The four of us headed over to the salad bar to try a little bit of everything, little being the operative word as the star of the dinner tonight was supposed to be the meat. The salad bar offered a good variety of dishes including a beet salad, cucumber & mango salad, field greens, fresh tomato & palm salad, coleslaw, smoked salmon, fresh ceviche and a big bowl of olives. While the hot food bar offered items like black bean, pinto beans, beef stew, chicken stroganoff, fried fish, fried potatoes, fried polenta and rice.

Worst Bite: The fried polenta was fried for too long which left it greasy and very difficult to eat.

Best Bite: The beet salad was simple and fantastic. Tender beets, light vinaigrette and some fresh chopped herbs.

I know what you’re all thinking – enough with vegetable talk! So, let’s move to the meats. Once we greenlit our table, the servers started offering us their tasty treats. We indulged in some chicken wings, chorizo sausage, pork sausage, parmesan beef, top sirloin, beef short ribs, garlic steak, leg of lamb, pork ribs, bacon wrapped turkey and chicken hearts. Which was pretty much 11 of the 12 offerings on the night!

Worst Bite: I have never been a fan of offal but decided to try the chicken hearts because bloggers must try everything! Let’s just say the only hearts I’ll be eating in the future are of the candied variety.

Best Bite: It’s a tie between the parmesan beef and the chorizo sausage, both very different and yet equally delicious.

Overall, the service at Minas is top notch, matching its warm and bright atmosphere, keeping things light and funky. However, the price is a bit steep, unless you have the appetite of a football player. Honestly, I don’t think Minas would be my first choice for another night out, however it’s worth giving it a try for all your carnivores, even if it’s for something a little different. My biggest beef (pun intended) with the meat selection is a lack of options outside of beef and pork.